


Cookies

by Lassarina



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: F/M, Schmoop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-05-18
Updated: 2008-05-18
Packaged: 2017-10-30 05:19:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/328160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lassarina/pseuds/Lassarina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zack and Aeris conduct experiments in baking on a snowy day.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cookies

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a mako_reactor claim on LJ.

Aeris opened the door to a blast of icy wind, a wave of snowflakes pelting her face, and a monstrous lumbering snow-creature, complete with snowy spikes of hair sticking out at all angles. She stepped back in surprise, and the snow-creature did its best to shake off the attached blanket of pollution-grey snow before coming into the house.

"Hey, babe." Zack's voice was muffled under his layers of clothing and snow.

Aeris thought it was a good thing that Elmyra had gone to visit her mother and wasn't home to see the snow melting into dirty puddles on her clean floor. "You look like a snow chocobo," she said, laughing.

"I'm making a mess on the floor, aren't I?" Zack peeled off his gloves and used them to bat ineffectually at the snow that coated him.

Aeris shrugged. "As long as we clean it up before Mom gets home tomorrow afternoon, it's fine," she said.

"Hey, I've scrubbed enough floors in SOLDIER," Zack said, carefully unwinding his scarf..

"Only because you get in so much trouble!" Aeris replied.

"Hey, it was perfectly understandable—yikes!" Zack yelped when snow slid down the back of his collar, and flailed about. "It doesn't _get_ like this in Gongaga," he said, aggrieved.

Aeris stepped forward, carefully avoiding the puddle of slushy snow at his feet, and helped unfasten his coat. "We'll hang this by the heater to dry," she said, "and I'll get you a towel for your hair."

"Gonna help me undress?" Zack wiggled his eyebrows at her, and winked.

"Well," Aeris said gravely, "I can undress you and we can get nothing else done tonight, or we can make cookies like I promised."

"Now that's just not a fair choice to ask me to make." Zack half-pouted for a moment, then brightened. "Can you undress me _after_ we make cookies?"

Aeris just shook her head, and went to get a towel.

When she returned, Zack had managed to undo all of his outer layers, as well as his pants. She gave them a skeptical look as they lay in the puddle on the floor.

"They were wet," Zack said defensively. "I left a pair here a few weeks ago; I'll just wear those."

"Well, get yourself dry and bring those wet things in here so we can dry them," Aeris said, and led the way into the kitchen.

Her ingredients were laid out in precise order, according to how she would use them. Zack's eyes brightened at the sight of the chocolate chips, and she swatted at his hand as he made to steal a handful. "Wash hands first," she said sternly, "and don't eat all the chocolate chips, or you won't have any cookies." She had already planned for Zack's propensity to snitch, and had measured out half again as much chocolate as she needed, but there was no reason for him to know that.

Whatever response he gave was muffled by the towel, and Aeris went to the sink to wash her own hands.

Zack finished drying himself off, and approached the counter with a mixture of eagerness and trepidation. "Okay, so, you just dump all this in?" he said.

"Didn't you ever help your mother make cookies?" Aeris asked. "There's an order to these things."

"I mean, Mom made cookies, but I mostly showed up when they were done." Zack snuck a handful of chocolate chips, and Aeris pretended she didn't see. "So, where do I start?"

They laughed and chattered as they measured and mixed, Zack attacking the batter in the bowl like it was an enemy to be conquered. He hovered around the oven like a little kid, watching as the cookies puffed up and turned deeply golden on the edges. When Aeris pulled the first tray out, he promptly burned his fingers trying to snitch one of the fresh cookies. She was reduced to helpless laughter as he juggled the cookie from one hand to the other, leaving smears of chocolate on his fingers as he tried to hold it for long enough to take a bite.

"Best cookies ever," he declared around a mouthful of too-hot chocolate.

"Well, I had help," she said with a smile.

His kiss tasted like chocolate.


End file.
